Cafe - Tobacco Bar Liquor Permit
NOTE: This permit is for existing tobacco
shops to add alcohol. This permit is NOT
for a bar or restaurant to add smoking.
Update 8/30/2023 - How to Access Online Application
August 2, 2023
From the Office of M. Caitlin S. Anderson
Liquor Control Division Director
RE: Application Timeline
for New Café-Tobacco Bar Permit
The Department of
Consumer Protection is actively creating an online application for the
Café-Tobacco Bar liquor permit created by the Legislature in Public Act 23-103. To ensure all interested applicants a fair
and equitable opportunity to obtain a permit, the Department will implement the
following process:
· September 1,
2023: The online application will go live
on www.eLicense.ct.gov. Applications will be accepted online only. Detailed instructions will be available on
the Department’s Tobacco Bar permit
page. Preliminary instructions are currently
available (below).
· October 2, 2023: All applications
must be submitted on eLicense by 11:59 p.m. to be considered in the first round
of Café-Tobacco Bar permit selection.
· October 16, 2023: The Department
will finish internal review of all submitted applications and send any
deficiency notices apprising applicants of issues with their applications no
later than close of business. The
Department will review applications as they are received but ensures that all
deficiency notifications will be completed by this date.
· October 17-October
23, 2023: All applicants will have the opportunity to
remedy any noted deficiencies and resubmit supporting application
documents. Any deficiencies must be
remedied by 5:00 p.m. on October 23.
· October 27, 2023: Department will
finish review of all deficiency materials and confirm that applications are
complete by close of business.
o
If
only one completed application is received per eligible town, a placard will be
sent to the applicant. The applicant may
choose to proceed with the provisional permit process approval or wait for
final permit approval. The town will now
be deemed at capacity, and no other applications will be considered at this
time.
o
If
more than one completed application is received per town, all completed
applications will proceed to a tie-breaker drawing.
· October 30, 2023: A tie-breaker
drawing will be held for any town where more than one complete application is
received. The drawing will be done
randomly via computer. The selected
applicant will then receive a placard.
The applicant may then choose to proceed with the provisional permit
process approval or wait for final permit approval. The town will now be deemed at capacity, and
no other applications will be considered at this time.
In the event an
applicant receives a placard and does not ultimately receive a final permit for
any reason (e.g., withdrawal, remonstrance, denial after hearing, etc.), the
Department will reopen the town for new applications in the following manner:
· For any town where
more than one complete application was received and a tie-breaker drawing was
held, the Department will re-use the non-selected applications. If only one additional application was not
selected during the tie-breaker drawing, it will automatically receive a
placard. If two or more additional
applications were not selected during the tie-breaker drawing, a second drawing
will be held.
· For any town where
only one complete application was received, the Department will reactivate the
online application for that town only.
Applications will be considered on a first-filed basis.
Tobacco Bar Preliminary Application Instructions
Frequently Asked
Questions
1.
What happens if
a town requires a special zoning meeting before allowing zoning officials and
town clerk to approve tobacco bar applications?
If it comes to the Department’s attention that one municipality
needs additional time to hold public hearings and sign off on applications, we
will modify the proposed application timeline for that one municipality.
2.
Do I have to begin providing health insurance coverage
if I don’t already have it?
Our application will
contain an attestation that the applicant provides health coverage to its
employees and their dependents in accordance with the Patient Protection
and Affordable Care Act and other applicable law. Therefore, if the
tobacco shop is not required by law to provide insurance under their specific
circumstances, then they need not provide it and can still justifiably answer
the question “yes”. If the applicant has any question about whether
s/he is obligated to provide their own insurance option, they should seek
consults with the appropriate professionals.